The vocalist of the rock band Bi-2, critical of Russian President Vladimir Putin, was deported to Israel after being detained in Thailand along with other members of the group, some of whom could be sent to Russia.
Singer Igor Bortnik, also known as Lyova Bi-2 or Leva, was born in 1972 in the former Soviet republic that is now Belarus, although he has Israeli citizenship.
The group confirmed early this Wednesday that the vocalist was "flying to Israel" while the rest of the band was still in "a small cell in the immigration prison along with 80 other people," in a message posted on Facebook.
The rock group, self-exiled for its opposition to Moscow as a result of the war in Ukraine, was detained by Thai police last Wednesday on the tourist island of Phuket, in the east of the country, for allegedly performing without the necessary permits.
According to Bi-2, which played last week in the Thai city of Pattaya, the error in the documents comes from the organizers of the event and they point out that in 2023 they already performed twice in Thailand without causing problems.
For its part, the event organizing company VPI admitted this Tuesday its mistake in "incorrectly issuing tourist visas for the band members, which caused a violation of Thailand's immigration law."
The Thai company also claimed on Facebook that since December it had received "pressure from the Russian consulate" in Thailand to cancel the concerts.
Bi-2 assures that the Thai authorities decided on Monday to deport the seven detainees to Israel. But, with the "plane tickets already purchased", the resolution was "canceled" yesterday after the visit of a Russian diplomat.
The NGO Human Rights Watch (HRW) denounces that Bi-2 members risk "being persecuted" if they are sent to Russia for their public criticism of the Moscow government and their opposition to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
"Thai authorities should immediately release the detained members of Bi-2 (...) Under no circumstances should they be deported to Russia, where they could be arrested for their criticism of Russian President Vladimir Putin," the director claimed in a statement on Tuesday. for HRW Asia, Elaine Pearson.
In May 2023, the Russian Ministry of Justice designated Bortnik as a "foreign agent" for "opposing the 'special military operation' in Ukraine, (and) making negative statements about Russia, its citizens and authorities," HRW recalls.
Bi-2, formed in 1988 in the Belarusian city of Babruysk and with significant success in Russia, is currently made up of six members, most of whom share Russian nationality with that of another country.
«Russian authorities want the musicians of the Belarusian rock group Bi-2 to be deported from Thailand to Russia. Bi-2 openly supported our protests in 2020 and opposed Putin's aggression in Ukraine. In Russia, they can be persecuted and repressed. We must not allow this to happen," denounced the leader of the Belarusian opposition in exile, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, on Saturday in X. EFE